What Remains
by Tear732
Summary: Her life was destined from the power she was born with to the point of giving up herself until a certain incident. Now she is a member of the 7th and found herself once again. But what if the past keeps hunting her?
1. Lost Prayers

~2 years ago~

She held her eyes closed. She couldn´t dare to open them, she just couldn´t. Images shot through her mind. Only fragments, carrying the memories of a past life. A life she had to leave behind. They have cut into her heart and soul, but no matter how hard she tried they´re always there, waiting like shaddows in the darkness. All the pain and desperation she gathered for years were about to break free. Long ago, deep inside her heart she decided to stop. She has builded a wall within herself, to lock them away and never allowed to be free. It was the only way for her back then. Otherwise she would be broken. So she decided to become empty.

Slowly she opened her eyes and for the first time in years she looked at the world not through empty eyes but her own and death was all she saw. No life remained her anymore. It was the same like 6 years ago. And it was her fault again.

Something shattered and fell apart. It was them. They were rushing to the surface, like waves during a storm.

She raised her hand and touched her cheek. Tears were flowing down her face. Becoming stronger. No longer, she was able to hold them back. Everything she has trapped emerged and she letted it.

She looked at her shaking hands and put them on her face. Covering her eyes, she formed them to fists. Then she removed them and encompassed her arms. Hugging herself, she lowered her head, barely touching the ground. Clinging to herself with a firm grip, she started to shake even more and finally she could let everything out. She screamed at first but it quickly turned into a quiet sobbing. The tears were now streaming even stronger.

In the end her saddness overwhelmed her anger and she came to understand that no matter how much she hoped and prayed, but no one will hear her.

Nobody would come to save her.

No one would ever come.

~Somewhere~

Kamui slowly regained his consciousness. When he tried to stand up a wave of dizziness overcame him but it quickly faded. He placed a hand on his head, in the naive hope it would help to stop the pain. He shrugged briefly before he removed his hand to look at it. Blood was covering it. It must have happened during the explosion earlier. Putting his hand back, he started to observe his surroundings.

Wind began to blow. Tardily, it became stronger and took with it the last mist of dust that was left from the incident. With the view becoming clearer he once more observes. There was nothing but a quiet and fade noise. He decided to follow it. With steady steps he followed the sounds until he reached the source, it was Aiko and she was crying.

She was sitting on the ground with her back to him. As he watched her, his missing memories came back to him.

Aiko had joined the 7th division barely 2 months ago. From the moment of her accession she was always part of their missions. Right from the beginning she proved her skills on the battlefield to be more than worth. Even in this short time she already earned the respects of her comrades. She hadn´t really any choice since she was a human. When they believed her to be weak and fragile, she proved them wrong.

Since their first meeting he wanting to fight with her again but she never letted him cross the line. But beside avoiding his attempts, she didn´t show any interest at anything. Never showing any emotions. She acted like an empty doll.

She esteems to always keep her distant from the others, the only exceptions were orders, like for this mission where they were formed to be a team, him and Aiko.

Their purpose was to eleminate the enemy. Everything went well until an unknown group of enemies appeared. They had surrounded them but they were no match for them. Aiko and Kamui fought their way through them. Only a few minutes were bygone, when they had beaten half of them already.

It all changed when their leader showed up. He covered himself with a gown, unrecognizable. Kamui noticed him poiting something at Aiko. He didn´t know what he did to her but her movements became slower, she became weaker. Only shortly she sanked to the ground, unable to stand anymore. When the enemies soldiers attempted to attack her, he quickly made his way to way, killing everyone of them. While he kept them away from her, Aiko began to shake uncontrollable. The moment Kamui turned to her an impulsive shockwave sended him flying. When Kamui looked back her a sphere of energy had encircled her. Holding herself, frantic she tried to keep the barrier alive but it was no use. The barrier broke into thousand pieces, unleashing the energy within. Her body was forced to set straight. Her face was pointed toward the sky. The power that escaped her body swalloded all her screams of pain. Before anyone could do even a movement, the energy became even stronger until it collapses into a huge explosion.

Now here they are. Only them and no one else, all reminders of any others disapeared. Kamui continued to look at Aiko for a little while, before he takes one more step towards her. And another.

She startled at his footsteps at first. When Kamui noticed that he stopped walking. Aiko carefully turned her head to him, it was like another person was looking at him. Not empty but alive. Tears were still leaving her eyes. Her expression was shocked at first when she saw him but it slowly turned into a relieved one. He couldn´t move. In her eyes he saw all the hurt and sorrow she caried with her but also the real her. He also saw a memorie of himself from a long time ago.

The wind once again began to rise but this time it was a gentle breeze.

„At least you…", these were the only words she managed to say before she smiled at him. Kamui still couldn´t move.

He never saw a sadder smile.

Aiko continued to smile at him. She was thankfull that he survived. She didn´t want to hurt him, to kill him. Not anyone else.

He began to walk again, coming closer to her until he was before her. Kamui extended his hand to her. She stared at him. His expression was neutral, not showing his intentions.

„Let´s go back to the others.", he said to her. Forming one of his usual smiles. She was still unsure but she reached for his hand. His grip was firm. Then his smile became more gentle, even honest.

For the first time she felt somehow safe and maybe she could still hope.

Maybe her prayers were heard.


	2. Rebirth

**Warning! Spoilers ahead! You read on your risk!**

~Present Time, Uyeda~

Her eyes were closed. She listened to their songs. Letting them inside her soul. She knows every part of their melody. In the last two years they became a part of her, a little piece, a shard born during the time she rebuilt herself. As she opened her eyes, she spoke,"Even at this high, you can still hear them so clear."

Aiko looked beneath her. She could hear the shouts and sounds of weapons clashing against each other. The melody of war. She was currently on one of the Harusames battleships up in the air. Today they, the 7th division, was on Uyeda. Raidon was their man of business. He was a former trade partner of the Harusame. Very „loyal" as long as both, his and the pirates interests were the same but he decided it was time to cut the ties and to try his own luck. He was not much of a loss but he managed to bring the anger of the elders and admiral Ahous. (through his doesn´t really count, of course thats „only" her opinion) Raidon created his own smuggling group with the intention to drag the Harusame out of business and to someones surprise he did a pretty good job. She gives him that much, but still he underrestimated them. No, he become to full of himself. A trait he might share with a certain someone...

In the end, they were sended to put an end to this. Simple: they came to kill him, which he didn´t make it easy for them. Raidon used all the money and influence he gained to hire every little outlaw he could find. The size resembles that of a little army which she thinks won´t really do much against the yatos. They were more than beasts in a battle. Someones nightmare was their love passion.

A sign tears her out of her thoughts. It came from Abuto who was beside her, watching the events. Aiko had already a guess why he did and she was pretty sure about it. She followed Abutos eyes and spotted the root of evil: Kamui. Their captain was already in the middle of battle, as usual and absolutly not according to the plan. His excitement has taken over him, a little faster this time but to nobodys surprise. She made a mental note to give him a big lecture when they return to the headquarters. She observers Kamui a little longer until a small smirk escaped her. The way he acted in a battle... was not really diffrent from his normal behavior. He was only much more handfull but it makes her happy when he is happy for an unknown reason.

And she starts to think again. When did things become like this? The somehow happy life she had now. It were only two years... She considers the Harusame, her division,... it became something like a home. Not exactly like one but it came close to it. Here she was free and herself, in an strangely way. She liked it. She knows very well that she can never become who she was before. That was impossible. Her old self was lost. To much had happened. She was broken and still far from repair and most probably never will, but what was formed of that mess was what mattered now. She discovered so many new parts of her she never knew. Like a new world and she wanted to explore it all and in someway it was thanks to her captain. He didn´t do anything special. Coincidence. That´s how she calls it. No fate or any other mysterious power took part on that day. She could feel her heart darken. He shouldn´t have been able to survive that day yet he did.

The moment he appeared before her. The release she felt. Death and loneliness accompanied her a lifetime. She learned to kill and forgot everything that once mattered to her. She obeyed the orders she was given flawless only to be sold and betrayed. The punishment for the sins she comitted. Then she learned the boundaries of physical pain and after it came the emptiness. Life didn´t matter anymore. Being alive or dead. Until that incident like all those years ago. The day it all began. All her emotions broke out. Again the same nightmare and then there was he. Standing there alive.

She prayed for hope. For a sign, that maybe there would be light.

He didn´t do anything.

But she learned that nothing is utterly and that she had a choice.

She wanted to live.

2 years ago, right after they were back on the ship she told him the truth about her.

„Ryunoko."

„That´s the denotation the tendoushuu used for me. It means dragonchild." She stays silent for a few seconds before she speaks again. „On earth we call them Ryuumyakyu it stands for Dragon Veins. ...so i guess the name is pretty self-explaining... ."

„Every life that comes into contact with Altana will change forever."

She felt bitter.

„My mother came into contact with a special type of Altana. It was in her early pregnancy, when was carrying me. Since i came into contact with it so soon in my growth i developed the unique abiltiy to regenerate my own Altana. I am not bound to my home planet. Through it still has it´s downsides."

Her eyes fall and she took a deep breath.

Only seconds later she reopens her eyes. An enemy´s ship was before them.

Ready to fire.

„I have to stop with the daydreaming.", she thinks. With the intention to finally join the fight she grabs the railing with both of her hands. Before she could go any further Abuto asked her,"You´re letting the captain of this time?". She respones to him,"No. I will give him special long lecture later. I promise, but i should go now or this ship will land sooner than it is supposed to." The colours of her eyes have changed. They were glowing in a purple colour Abuto knows to well by now. He only gave a smile before she jumped of the railing.

She was in mid-air now and started to concentrate her energy under her feet. She created a small explosion. The shockwave that followed was strong enough to bring her close to the enemies ship. Aiko grabbed the hilt of her sword and slowly pulls it out. A kodachi fixed on her belt. The blade itself was made especially for her. A gift from her former master. The sword was forged from a rare metal.

She began to conduct her own Altana inside the black blade. In the blink of an eye she swangs her sword, spliting the ship in two. Her fall was expedited by the following explosion of the ship above her, but before she would crash on the ground she used her powers to create a blast to stop her falling.

The fight was already in full swing. Dead bodies laid everywhere. Mostly (or only) from Raidons men. She already said it: Yatos are monsters. No matter where Aiko looked, all of her companions wore the same expression on their face. They were all enjoying themselves. It was no wonder since they sought strong opponents and from what she saw some of the hirelings could actually be count to this specific group. „I really have to concentrate on the battle... ." After Aiko admonished herself, she joined them.

Abuto watched the whole scenario. The ship had finally landed and he was about to leave it. He would never admit it but he was proud of this girl. Aiko was the only member of the division who wasn´t a yato but she was able to keep up with them even without her powers. The day Housen first introduced her as a new member, he and others were more than against it but she proved them all wrong. Doubt became respect and she did earn it. Yet the biggest mystery about her was her change of heart. „Empty doll", the nickname they gave her. She never showed emotions or any sorts of interests and always trying to keep her distance. It was after a certain mission she slowly changed and began to open herself. A rough start, but it paid of. You could still see her struggle sometimes but that was a part of how she was. She never mentions anything from her past, when questioned she would cut off completely. So they leave it be.

As Abuto fought alongside his brothers, his captain came into view. Abuto could feel Kamuis bloodlust. Leaving a trail of corpses behind him he thrusted himself further into the battlefield, leaving Abutos field of vision. One more thing he was thankfull to Aiko was her ability to keep Kamui under controll. It saved his nerves a few times. She became the captains babysitter along with him. He remembered the promise she gave him not to long ago. A big smile appeared on his face. It was malicious joy.

Aiko had slashed one more of Raidons hirelings. She was a bit offside from the fight. The few remaining solidiers that lingered here were no match for her. A hireling tried to attack her from behind but she was quicker. Before he knew what happened he fell backwards. He was dead. Aiko throw her sword right into his chest. „That should be the last one.", she said while pulling out her sword, her alarms went on. She could barely dogde whatever it was. Clouds of dust were formed from the impact. She could see the shape of the unknown attacker. He picked something up right from the place of the attack. After the dust finally began to fade she could see her new opponent. It was Raidon. What he picked up was his haunch. He stood a few meters apart from her holding his haunch in his right hand, leaning on his shoulders. He throw a self-assured smile at her, convinced he would win.

She would love nothing more than to punch this smile of his face but she knew better. Raidon, was a Dakini. They were far known for their brute strength.

„This won´t be easy."

Raidon was the one to first attack, but Aiko was able to dogde without problems. She had waited for him to do so. She needed to know how great his strength really is. A giant hole was formed from his blow. Raidon was the first Dakini she ever fought. The rumors about them were true. She needed to be carefull carefull and try to not underestimate him.

She firms her grip on her blade, waiting for him to attack again. She hadn´t to wait long for him. The both of them wanted to end this fast. Raidon was right before her but this time he much faster. She could see his desire to crush her. He lunges his arm for the strike. She waited until the last moment before he touched the ground. She avoids his attack and disappeared from his view. She moved past him. Placing her hand on his chest she unleashed the concentrated energy. The strength of the impact pushed him back by such force that he barely managed to stand. Aiko appeared behind him. He was open. It was a now or never. Ready for the final strike, she swang her for at him but she hit his haunch. He was able to block her attack. Her surprise was big. Raidon used all his power to threw her backwards. She made it in time to block his hit but his blow was still to strong. When she finally stopped sliding, she tried to set herself up. Pain covered her body and it was hard to move.

Raidons presence overcame her like a shock. Fast she searched for her sword but it was impossible for her to reach. Raidon held his haunch above his head. He looked right into her eyes. „You did well little girl, but this is the end.", he told her.

This was the moment time had stopped.

Only a bit more and he would kill her.

Aiko looked up at him. Giving her „this" smile, she despised so much. He held in for a moment before he screamed,"It´s over now!".

„He is right. It´s the end but only for him.", she thought.

She was calm. The light in her eyes began to fade away. Altana began to surround her but in the instance she wanted to end him for good, he stopped. The haunch fell out of his hand onto the ground beside him. He began to spit blood.

He fell wordless to the side showing the person standing behind him. Blood droped from his right hand and he throw a smile at her. It was a self-assured one but still entirely diffrent from Raidons. It belonged to him.

After Aiko overcame her surprise, she took a deep breath and returned to being her normal self. Kamui went towards Aiko until he stood in front of her. He was the first to speak,"You tried to steal my pray again."

This made her smile. „Well, he came to me, so what was i supposed to do? Besides i before you came, i was totally fine."

He responded,"And in the end you still needed to be saved." „Are you lecturing me now?", she answered him. Kamui extended his hand to her. She gave him a warm smile in exchange.

„Thank you."

The both of them hadn´t notice that someone was watching them. It was Abuto.

„Just like two years ago."


	3. New People

~2 weeks ago, Harusame Docking Station~

There was no escape.

His worst nightmare had manifested itself in front of him. The demon that will find you in the darkest part of your soul just to eat you alive.

And once found you can never escape.

The only getaway is to gather all your courage to face it or simply ignore it.

Ignore it like all the people who just walk past them.

Aiko and Rinna were holding another one of their "stare-contests". These two went for each other's throat over the smallest banalities. In the beginning the others still went trough the effort of trying to reason with them but it didn´t work. The best strategy was to leave them alone so they could sort it out by themselves.

Today wasn´t different.

They argued like usual and have already reached the "final-phase". It could have been over very quickly, but a good meaning idiot had to interfere. The poor guy was sweating like he just left the shower. He could barely hold his tears. Rinna and Aiko were looking at him with their "death-glare". One of their natural abilities as woman and both have mastered it to perfection.

It was a ludicrous situation and they both knew it, but their pride got the better of them. Neither of them had the intention to back down and the tension only continued to grow. After several more minutes they became tired of it. Both girls snorted and turned around, going their separate ways.

The young man they had tormented until now sank onto the floor after his legs gave in. Finally, his body began to relax, and he could breathe again.

He thanked the heaven for his life and learned to leave certain people be.

~Present time~

Aiko was in the one of the underlying levels of the station. Around this time, it was almost empty, and which makes it the perfect place for the handover. She had to wait a little until her contact arrived. But it wasn´t Taro. Instead of him appeared Shouko. She had a large bag with her and greeted Aiko with her kind smile. "...Shouko. What are you doing here? Where is Taro?", Aiko asked. "He still hasn´t returned yet. But before he left, he asked me to give you this." Shouko led her hand into her bag and pulled a package out of it. She handed it over to Aiko.

"The Delivery was successful. I wish you a good day Aiko." Shouko only made a few steps before she turned around to face Aiko once more. Aiko looked a bit puzzled. Shouko gave her a reassuring smile. "Taro asked me also to give you a message." She cleared her throat and spoke to her in a deeper voice. "I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoy the beauty of blooming cherry blossoms in spring." Aiko began to blush a bit. This made Shouko laugh a bit. ("A rare sight.") Shouko bit her farewell once more before leaving. Aiko was now alone and looked at the package in her hands. She could barely hold her excitement.

Unfortunately for her, plans do not always work out, but irony does.

Right after she set the first step in her room the elders wanted to see her.

She cursed them.

~An hour went by~

Aiko managed to keep her self-control, until she reached her room. She made sure that the doors were closed before she fell on her knees in front of her bed and yelled into her blanket.

It didn´t help.

She continued this for a while longer. After she had satisfied her desire to scream, her brain had found its ability to function again.

She had just returned from a meeting with the elders. They assigned her to a new mission. It was nothing new. Official she belonged to the 7th division but she also carried out missions for them. Some of them were about assassinations or just retrieving stolen goods. It was only logical due to her past that they would use her. She became a useful resource for them and she used them in return, like a bed chamber in the better parts of the headquarters and a very good salary plus extra payment depending on the mission.

With the Harusame being a criminal organisation it´s important to have good relations. Most of its members were ruthless and would easily sell out the other if the price was right. The same counted for the elders.

But she learned from her past mistakes. Trust was something she didn´t give. If they would try something, she would just kill them, and they knew it.

In her younger days she would have thrown herself in front of a stranger to keep them from harm but today she didn´t even flinch anymore when she took a life. It became an instinct for her.

Trust was a gift that people must earn.

She was still kneeling in front of her bed but turned her head sideward. Her glimpse fell onto the book lying on the nightstand next to her bed. Aiko felt so conflicted.

"That idiot... ."

She hadn´t expected that he would really manage to get it. This book was the newest volume of "Eternal Spring". The official release was supposed to be in 2 months, but he promised her to get it for her.

The story is about Jun and Saito who met in university to study photography and befriended each other. That friendship became love. They became a couple but with the direction their lives were leading them they couldn´t stay together. Now 5 years later they met again but both had new partners. Jun was engaged and planned to marry in the coming months. In the last volume they spend the night together and fought with their guilt and their true feelings for each other. Since Jun was about to marry and Saito also had a girlfriend, they agreed to go back to being friends. It was revealed at the end of the book that Jun was pregnant but not who the father of the baby was.

Anger and frustration fought inside her along with excitement. Words alone couldn´t describe how badly she wanted to read that book but she had to leave tomorrow for the new mission the elders entrusted her with. Normally she took a few days to rest between jobs particularly after ones like Uyeda. She still had bruises from her fight with Raidon but this couldn´t wait and even if there was time she wouldn´t risk it. She had to go.

It involved Taro.

Taro Shinji was a shinra and one of their top smugglers. They worked together on a few occasions. Because of a very unlucky event he discovered her embarrassing love for corny romance novels. Since then he provided her with them in secret. That was the beginning of their friendship.

Taro had a certain function within the Harusame. His own organisation, "the shippers". If there was something special you wanted, he would get it for you. Some of the shippers were official members but only worked for Taro. Even the prices were good. For some cases he wouldn´t even demand a payment. Most of his customers requests were of private nature and they want it that way, but he knew them all. When Taro does a shipment by himself, he will take his customers embarrassment as his payment.

He lives for that.

Two weeks ago, he was sent to monitor the proceedings on Horaiya. Horaiya was a dwarf planet, mostly covered by desert and hasn´t much to offer beside heat and sand. The only thing that draws people there is it´s high occurrence of Black Stars. They are extremely rare gems. These stones are as black as the night but when light fells trough them, they break it. When that happens and someone looks through them it looks like a thousand stars. Once you see this, you will learn the true meaning of beauty.

They got a request from a contact of the black-market. He has a client who was said to pay more than generous so they sent Taro to make sure things wouldn´t go out of control. It still did. They just barely made it into the ship when they were caught by the local officers. Taro "borrowed" one of their ships for the transport of the Black Stars while drawing their attention on the pirate's ships. Turning them into the belief that was where the gems were. While they chased after them, the others could leave in secret. The problem was that two people had stay behind to steer the Harusames ships. Apparently, they had a safe spot where they would meet up with the others, but something went wrong and now she must go and rescue them.

Something was fishy.

Taros abilities were the reason why he oversees the most dangerous tasks. He always tried to cover up every case that could go wrong. He has a back-up plan for everything.

And that bothered her.

But for what reason would he...?

Before her thoughts could wander of, she dragged them back mind to the topic.

The other one who stayed behind was Rinna.

Rinna Kamaye.

Her anger rose anew. Aiko had met many people in her life she wished death but this person was a complete different story. There has never been anyone who irritated her as much as she did.

Rinna was a yato. She was already a member of the pirates before Aiko joined two years ago. Rinna was the same age as Aiko, but her fighting skills far exceeded the others. She could maybe even defeat Abuto in a one-on-one battle.

She was extremely proud and thick-headed and complicated at "times". Once this person made up her mind there was nothing that could change that. Even when she knew, she was wrong, she wouldn´t admit it. Rinna showed her dislike for Aiko right away and hasn´t bothered one time to hide it since then.

Her mind has often tried to solve this mystery and that ended mostly with a headache. In the end she remained convinced that Rinna just disliked humans. It was a simple solution. An easy one and she didn´t care enough to bother more. They got used to handle it this way and when they were on a job, both of them were adult enough to put it behind them. It worked and that was enough.

It had to.

~The next day, Docks~

Aiko turned her rounds. They were supposed to leave an hour ago and her patience was on the edge. It was always the same with this guy. He never changed. Giving up her mental fight she leaned against the wall. Another half an hour later there was still no sign of him and it was enough for her. In this very moment Ryou appeared. He throws a smile and waved her. In a slow pace he walked towards her, taking his sweet time as if the world awaited his grace.

This was Ryounosuke Itsuki or just Ryou. He was a half-caste, born with the blood of Shinra and Dakini. His appearance was strongly dominated by his Dakini genes but his personality was his own. Overall, he was a laid-back and well-tempered guy, almost optimistic, but his habit to be late was a pain. It often happened before they had to leave and delayed them for a good time. The first impression most of him had was that he was a strong warrior. One day somebody even thought he was a captain, but Ryou was a pilot. In the entire Harusame were only a few that could match him but he was still strong. He was just as dangerous in a fight on the ground as he was in a ship in the air. The most terrifying that could happen was when he fell into a state of excitement. Each time his madness had shown, it gave her chills.

Ryou has been Aikos "personal" pilot. A year ago she used her savings to buy a small ship for her personal use. Traveling on the other captain's ships was sometimes difficult and led to some conflicts, so this was the best solution for everyone. If she has no use for it between missions, Ryou usually uses it for simple deliveries. He also carries out the maintenance or other repairs. It has worked very well between the two so far. At first she tried everything to push him away, but he persisted and now she could not say how much she valued him.

"Where have you been this time?" she asked him, clearly angry. He smiled once more, but gentler and sadder. He smiled again, but softer and sadder. Short and fleeting and then it disappeared. His short sentiment was gone and his usual carefree self was back.

"Let's fly!"

Full of energy, he stormed into the ship. Aiko first had to overcome her surprise before following him.


End file.
